


Prying

by cantget__gEESE



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angry Katara, Canon Divergence, Found Family, Gaang (Avatar) as Family, Hurt/Comfort, My first fic, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Ozai (Avatar) is an Asshole, T for swearing and mild descriptions of uhhh zukos scar, The Gaang Learns How Zuko Got The Scar (Avatar), Zuko Joins The Gaang Early (Avatar), Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck, angry zuko, it is justified, like her mom died and zuko did chase them around the world so like, man its 5:05 am and i am thriving, prisoner zuko
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:34:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26421964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cantget__gEESE/pseuds/cantget__gEESE
Summary: Zuko knelt before the group, holding up his wrists. “I offer myself as your prisoner, then.”They looked at each other, then back at the Prince. They were in agreement then. They’d take their enemy as a prisoner, if only to ensure he doesn’t attack them or anyone else again.“Fine. Do not make us regret this.”
Relationships: Aang & Zuko (Avatar), Katara & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka & Zuko (Avatar), The Gaang & Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong & Zuko
Comments: 39
Kudos: 321





	1. Katara

Zuko knelt before the group, holding up his wrists. “I offer myself as your prisoner, then.”

They looked at each other, then back at the Prince. They were in agreement then. They’d take their enemy as a prisoner, if only to ensure he doesn’t attack them or anyone else again. “Fine. Do not make us regret this.”  
—————————  
Katara

Katara thought back to just a few hours ago, when the Fire Prince himself had graced her friends with his presence. What a load of bullshit. People like him didn’t ever change, they’re ashmakers, monsters. He’d hunted them—children, mind you— across the world! Now he wants to fight the nation he so fervently fought for and demanded was superior? It wasn’t even that long ago Zuko had claimed to think that, now he wants to bring down the Firelord? No way.  
Even just having to stand watch outside his makeshift cell -a few walls Toph closed him into- made her cringe. She wanted to get away from him, from his obvious lies. She didn't know what he was up to, but she knew it clearly wasn’t beneficial to her friends, or their success.

Katara suddenly heard metallic clanking coming from the cell. ‘Must be the chains Toph formed, guess he’s finally awake’ She sighed, annoyed, not wanting to deal with this scum just yet. However, the cuffs and blindfold were guarantees he couldn't hurt her or her friends. She heard a groan as the Prince came to, head likely sore from being knocked out by her waterbending earlier. She smirked at that. He was so pathetic, not being able to defend himself from a weak attack like that. ‘Not such a “Master Firebender” now, huh?’ She peered through the small slit in the door, about her eye level. The Prince seemed disoriented, to be expected after being knocked out and blindfolded. What she didn't expect was the heavily breathing and thrashing around. What was this guy’s deal? He knew he was going to be a prisoner, why’s he so anxious about being cuffed? She didn’t need Toph’s “sight” to know he was alarmed. Slipping through the crude door, she quickly alerted him of her presence. “Zuko.” She said, grasping his attention. “Calm down, you’re our prisoner now. Stop panicking, you’re in the Air Temple.” 

Silence. Then, a whisper. Katara almost didn’t catch it, it was so small. 

“I-I’m blind.”

Blinking in confusion, she didn’t understand why that was the first thing his mind had panicked about. Smirking, she said “You’re not blind, dipshit, its just a blindfold.”

“A...blindfold?”

“Yeah, a blindfold. Stop panicking.” she stood there for a minute and almost left when she heard another quiet whisper, this one a little louder.

“Could- Could you please take it off?” 

Katara scoffed, “No. We don’t want you planning anything. Don’t try to say you’re not, no one like you ever changes.”

A moment passed, and another. She almost thought he’d slipped unconscious again, when he said in his small voice again, “I’m trying to help. I’ve realized how the Fire Nation isn't actually helping. Please, you can keep the cuffs on, just please take off the blindfold.”

He almost sounded sincere. Him practically begging her was unexpected, especially coming from the guy so obsessed with his ‘honor’. It almost made her falter and rethink her actions. She wasn’t heartless, and he was only a teenager like her, and obviously anxious about his blindness, what could the harm possibly be?  
Then the side of her that wasn’t so forgiving remembered that she was talking about the enemy. She couldn't put her or her friends’ lives in danger like that. He just had to deal with it, even if some small part of her felt slightly bad. “No. I won’t take any chances with you”  
Apparently he got the message, as all she heard was a sigh from where he was sitting as she left the cell.

He stayed quiet for the rest of her shift, only moving around every so often.


	2. Toph

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was Toph’s turn to babysit the Fire Prince. However, he begins to worry her with his erratic heartbeat and heavy breathing. Trying to be friendly, she may or may not have touched upon a sticky subject for the Prince.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey yall uh i posted ch 1 yesterday and it already got like 22 kudos??? and way more hits???? thank you so much for ur support. it was a big ol shock to open ao3 a few minutes ago to see that, as well as some comments. I appreciate all your ideas and im gonna try to update regularly!

It was time for Katara’s shift to end. Toph had volunteered for the next shift, as she was interested in finding out more about their prisoner. Punching Katara’s arm and grinning at her as she went to find the group, Toph took her place by the handmade prison.

———————-  
Toph

Ughhh. It had already been a few hours since she had taken up post here. She was losing her mind. Well, actually it might not have been hours. Maybe minutes. She didn't really know and didn’t exactly have a great way to keep time. Anyways, she was bored as hell. Zuko had turned out to be rather boring, and apparently only responded to her teasing or questions with grunts or short huffs of breath. Maybe it was all he knew how to communicate with, though she did find that unlikely, as her friends had referred to him as the “angry ponytail guy” on more than one occasion. She could only assume that yelling came along with that title, as she didn't find him very responsive right now. Eh, it was probably just him brooding about being his enemy’s prisoner, and wanted to keep to himself. That was understandable. Still boring for Toph though. She kicked a pebble and sent it skittering across the floor of the old temple. With a grunt, she decided to try and break the silence.   
“Why are you here?”

No response. Maybe he was asleep, or just ignoring her. She pressed on, determined to get some kind of response from the boy.   
“I mean, we haven’t really seen much of each other, but from what I can gather from stories, you’re a pretty staunch defender of the Fire Nation.”

She felt his figure tense. Huh. Okay, he was awake and the Fire Nation was a sour subject. Or perhaps the mention of his chase? Cataloguing that away for future use, she continued.  
“So, I guess I’m trying to ask why you actually up and left your comfy seat at the head of the entire Fire Nation to come here to the Avatar and his gang.”

She gestured wildly to emphasize the ‘entire nation’ bit. Then she paused. His heartbeat was hammering really fast. And it was loud, too. She’d never felt someone’s anxiety skyrocket like that so quickly. Well, maybe it wasn’t anxiety. Maybe it was anger, frustration, fear, panic. Any of those could be possible explanations for what had just happened with the teenager’s pulse. It was odd though. She kept turning her words around in her head to try and pick apart what could have set him off so easily, yet she couldn’t really think of anything. All she had said was that he was risking his whole livelihood and future to fight for a kid he’d spent the better half of a year hunting down.

Oh. Yeah that was probably it. He was anxious because there was no guarantee that Toph and the others would actually accept him into their group, or turn him loose again to go back to the nation he apparently hated now. Suddenly, another sharp spike in the Prince’s pulse pulled her from her thoughts. She heard him rattling his chained hands, almost like he was trying to escape the cuffs. ‘Okay, Toph. Time for some action.’ She bent her way into the stone cell and apparently scared the guy even closer to death. She crossed her arms, scowling.   
“What’re you trying to do here?” 

The clanking stopped for a moment, then resumed for another second. He lowered his hands again and was apparently no longer trying to escape the cuffs. He breathed out. And in. And out. And in. And that was the entirety of the next minute. The Crown Prince of the Fire Nation apparently trying to control his panic as he breathed. 

Toph finally got tired of waiting. It only took about a minute. “Well?”

A pause. He was apprehensive, almost not about to share his thoughts, then apparently thought better of it.  
“I don’t like not being able to see.”

Toph frowned. What did he mean? Being blind was just fine, actually better than seeing with your eyes. Just as she was about to make a sarcastic comment to tell him its not so bad, she paused. He’s not supposed to be blind. Was he injured? Did Katara’s waterbending hurt him that bad? Sucking in a breath, she quietly said,  
“You’re not supposed to be blind. Are you hurt?”

She could tell he had frozen at her words. Strange. He seemed shocked or surprised that she had expressed any semblance of empathy for him. Weird. Maybe he just wasn’t used to nice people, as he was from the Fire Nation.

“N-no? It’s not permanent, I think. A blindfold. The other one said she never wanted me to take it off, so I guess it might as well be. Can’t you see it?”

“No, actually. I’m blind. I can see through earthbending.” She stated. “Oh.” He sounded so scared. That was one of the first things that registered in her mind. Not the fact that Katara had basically just sentenced a kid to indefinite blindness, though that followed suit. It was the fear in his voice that compelled her to step closer to the Prince. She knew full well what he was capable of, yet she felt no indication that he would attack, unless provoked. Crouching by the slumped form against the far end of one of the walls, she reached out. A body tensed under her fingers. ‘Don’t worry, its just surprise. He’ll relax in a bit’ She had to chastise herself for being momentarily worried. She felt up the wrist she had started on to the shoulder, then up to the chin. She didn’t think he’d be so guarded. She’d never felt someone so tense and so nervous and quiet before. She didn’t want to think about what he thought she might do to him.

Toph moved her fingers lightly over his face, up to his eyes. She paused as he sucked in a breath. Then she felt something rough on his otherwise smooth face. A scar, she realized, something had caused this kid to get half of his face mutilated. Wait. What? What had happened to him for this to be here? Why was it here? What had injured him? Questions filled her mouth and nearly spilled out when she remembered the tensed and now shaking boy under her fingertips. ‘Right. The blindfold.’ Easily finding the rough cloth and the knot it lead to, she spent a few minutes trying to untangle the knot. ‘Fuck! Why is this so difficult?? Must be one of Sokka’s damn Water Tribe fish net knots.’

Finally after a few more minutes of struggling and frustrated grunts, Toph managed to untie the damn thing. It fell off of Zuko’s face and settles on the floor near her feet. She heard the Prince let out a sigh of relief, then seemingly remembered one of his captors was behind him. He stilled again and very stiffly mumbled a quiet thanks.

Toph stood up and walked in front of the boy and plopped down. She took note of how he flinched away from her as she made her sharp and sudden movements. This kid was tense. Deciding to try and do something to calm him down, she tried to speak to him once again. “You know,” she paused, trying to make this seem as clear as possible, “My name is Toph. I’m not going to hurt you. Just because you’re our prisoner doesn’t mean we can’t be nice to you.”

He doesn’t speak. He relaxes ever so slightly. She grinned a bit. She didn’t expect him to ask her a question though.  
“What do you mean? Why wouldn’t you hurt me? I’m a prisoner. I offered myself up to you all as one, and I am fully prepared to take what that means along with the restraints.” He paused, “And the angry girl made it pretty clear I was walking a narrow line here.” 

Toph snorted. “Angry girl? You mean Katara?” He just made some sort of motion she assumed to be a shrug.   
“I guess. The one that was watching me earlier.”

“Yeah.” Toph sighed, “That’s Katara, alright.” Then she remembered what he had said before that. She immediately snapped back to his words. “Hang on, you thought we would hurt you?” Another shrug.

“That’s how you treat prisoners. Teach them a lesson, or something.” His heartbeat picked up as he said those words. “Uh- I- I don’t really know all that much other than what I picked up at sea. No real experience in that area.” He tensed up again.  
Odd. This guy was going to be tough to figure out. However, another matter graced her mind at that moment.

“Katara threatened you?!” 

“I guess. Something about ‘You’ll never change’ and ‘dont hurt my friends or you’ll regret it.’ Then some vaguely threatening waterbending. Kind of mild actually. I’ve bee-“ He stopped himself. “It wasn’t very scary.” He concluded his thought. 

Toph smirked “Yeah, she’s not good at that kind of stuff. Better at insults, so watch out for those. Though I get a feeling you’ve already heard some of them.” She nudged the boy, forgetting that he was still tense. He flinched, but didn’t scoot away this time. She counted that as a win for her, as apparently now he knew that at least she wasn’t going to hurt her. “Don’t worry about Sugar Queen. I’m gonna go have some words with her after my shift. She’s got some explaining to do about that blindfold-” She felt him relax a tiny bit and nod his head “-And if she makes trouble for ya, just call me.” Toph punctuated that a lightly glowering smile and as she turned to leave she heard the Prince-Zuko, she reminded herself, say “Thank you, Toph.”

She grinned back at him. Maybe he wouldn’t be so boring after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright folks, Chapter 2 done!
> 
> I really liked writing from Toph’s perspective in this chapter, it was interesting. Next chapter might be either from sokka or zukos perspective. Idk yet lmao
> 
> Also, thank you lexilockwood for telling me that this fic sort of has the same base as another called Blind Trust by the author birdyhands. I was unaware of this and it was not my intention to copy the idea. I read Blind Trust before I began this chapter, so as to make sure there was no inadvertent copying on my side. If there are similarities in our stories, its just a coincidence and I apologize to anyone and the author who might have thought I was copying Blind Trust. I randomly just thought about ‘oh yeah some prisoner zuko sounds interesting’ and worked from there. Thank you again for letting me know about this, lexilockwood!
> 
> mmmok im gonna go to sleep now i am t i r e d
> 
> Thank you for reading!  
> -goose


	4. Sokka

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Sokka's turn to watch the Prince. They start off a little rocky, but Sokka soon learns that not everything is as it seems with the teenager.

Sokka reached Zuko's cell and let Toph off guard duty. As she passed him she gave him a pointed, as if to say 'be nice, or else'. Sokka gulped. He wasn't sure why Toph had apparently taken such a sudden liking to the firebender, but he knew that she would definitely follow up on her vague threat if the Prince complained about Sokka to her. Best to not let that happen.

\----------  
Sokka

Sokka was tired of rocks. The stuff was everywhere here. Beds, benches, floor, cells. He guessed it was pretty and all, but seriously, how did the Air Nomads live like this? Maybe they could use air to cushion themselves or something, or maybe they just floated all the time. Actually, now that he thinks about it, Aang spent more time in the air than on the earth, though he still sat down and slept on the ground. Whatever, he could contemplate that later with Aang over dinner. He had a prisoner to watch.

Said prisoner apparently did not speak much. Or at all. He was surprisingly quiet for such an angry guy. Where was all that yelling power? He was a prisoner to his enemies, wasn't his honor supposed to be tarnished or something? Deciding to try to get him to speak for once, Sokka cleared his throat.  
"So...why are you here?"

"I'm here because I'm a prisoner." Replied the teenager. Okay, so that was how it was gonna be. Fine, two could play at that game. Sokka looked through the eye hole to toss a glare at the Prince, then paused.   
"Where's your blindfold?"

Zuko glanced up to meet Sokka's gaze. Those golden eye burned into him like the fire he wielded. "Toph took it off." Was the answer.

"Why?" Sokka asked. Katara had made it clear they were not to remove any of his bindings, including the blindfold. He knew that Toph didn't really care about anything that Katara says, but this was serious. They had an enemy- former enemy, maybe? Sokka was unsure at the moment- locked up in a crudely made cell that he could easily break out of at any time. Though, if Zuko was going to break out, he guessed the Prince would have done it already. He'd been here for almost a full day by now as a prisoner. Maybe he really did want to help them. 

"I didn't like being blinded."

"Why?"

"It reminds me o- never mind. What does it matter? I'm not going to keep chasing you guys. I've already told you I wouldn't attack you anymore." Sokka considered this for a moment. The guy definitely had to choose his words carefully there. Apparently he's got things to hide from them. Sokka couldn't take any chances here though, so he decided to question him some more. He just hoped he wouldn't scare off the Prince.   
"What did it remind you of?"  
He glanced back to the Prince to see that he had stiffened up and had a grimace on his face. Sokka almost thought he wasn't going to answer him, until Zuko's face melted into a sort of accepted discomfort. Sokka kind of bad about bringing up whatever he just did. It was obviously painful memories for him.

"After I uh, received my scar. I-I couldn't see out of my eye for weeks after I woke up. Makes me uh... uncomfortable to relive that." Zuko looked down at the floor and rolled his shoulders. It must be uncomfortable to have his hands tied behind him like that. But, what did he mean by received? That was a weird word choice. It would make more sense if he had said got or something, but he made it sound like someone else gave it to him. And woke up? What was that? Maybe he had just been unconscious after such a massive injury.   
"Oh. Okay. What do you mean by received though? And after you 'woke up'? What does that mean?" Sokka questioned.

"Why do you want to know?" Came an annoyed response. Yeah, alright, maybe he should've seen that once coming. the guy obviously had something in his past he didn't want to talk about. Sokka doubted that he would tell his captors whatever it is. Still, the Prince had come to them, and even offered to be their prisoner. Shouldn't he try to be more friendly? Sokka wouldn't push the matter though. It was obviously a touchy subject, and he didn't want to make the guy who could breathe fire angry.  
"Fair enough." Was Sokka's response.

An hour passed. Nothing happened. Honestly, Sokka had thought this would be more interesting. He got that prisoners didn't like interacting with their guards, but Sokka knew that Zuko was sincere when he said he wanted to help, thanks to Toph, so he was willing to give Zuko a chance to prove himself as an ally, or even just neutral towards the group. That kind of trust wasn't going to be easily won by them, but Sokka would let him try. Still, this was kind of a letdown.  
"Wanna play a game?"

A pause, then "....A game?"

Sokka laughed "Yeah, you know what a game is right? Something to pass the time with other people?"

Zuko's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Yes, I know what a game is. I don't know why you want to play one with me right now, though."

"Simple, I'm bored and if we're going to be friends or allies or even just tolerate each other, we should hang out. Get to know each other. I have a perfect game for this." Sokka stepped through the door and plopped down on the floor a small ways away from the Prince. He flinched away. Huh. "Let's play Two Truths and One Lie!"

Zuko looked up at him, confused. "What's that?"

Sokka sighed, explaining the rules to try to help Zuko understand. Oh, this sweet summer child was going to absolutely get his ass beaten during his first game. Once Zuko understood, they started to play. Sokka went first.

"Okay, so... I once almost died because I went swimming in freezing temperatures, I dated the Moon Spirit, and I once saved a village from a volcanic eruption."

Zuko seemed to consider these options, and eventually landed on "Aren't you used to the cold water? Honestly, you and your friends have done weirder things than dating spirits."

Sokka was a bit surprised, as Zuko didn't look shocked at all to learn his truths. Guess he'll just have to try harder next time, then. "Hm. You're right. Your turn now!"

Zuko seemed to consider his answers, landing on, "My sister tried to push me off the top of the tallest tree in the garden when we were younger, I impersonated a local legend to stop theives, and I've never dated anybody."

Sokka frowned, that first one was too cruel to be true. "No way your sister tried to kill you when you were kids!" 

Zuko smirked. "I had a girlfriend before I left." Sokka stared. What the fuck? That's- That's insane. His family tried to kill him? Tui and La, that's terrible.  
"Uhm, okay then. My turn. I trained with the Kyoshi Warriors, Katara used to accidentally freeze me in chunks of ice, and I can sew pretty well."

Zuko answered quickly, "You can't sew. The Water Tribes teach that women are to do that and cooking and cleaning, while men are to protect and hunt. Besides, your fighting style mimics the Warriors' a bit, utilizing stealth and acrobatics in combat."

Damn, he was better at this than Sokka originally thought. Guess he's read up on his cultures.

"Okay," Zuko said, "My turn. I spent a month working in a tea shop in Ba Sing Se, I've actually helped you guys a few times, and I don't know how to swim."

Hm. Sokka really couldn't believe that Zuko spent a month dealing with people as a job, especially in Ba Sing Se of all places. That city is terrified of firebenders. "You didn't work in a tea shop." Zuko grinned. Damn it. 

"I actually did. I know how to swim, the Fire Nation is made up of smaller islands." The Prince looked too smug. Sokka couldn't believe he'd gotten two in a row wrong.   
"Wait, when did you help us?" 

"Oh, I freed the Avatar from a high-security Fire Nation prison and I found and released your bison in Lake Laogai."

"Woah, that was you? We assumed Appa had broken free on his own. Wait- doesn't that mean you were serving tea in Ba Sing Se at the same time as us?"

Zuko laughed a bit, "Yeah, actually. I'd kind of wanted to quit chasing after you guys for a while there. I was working in a shop called the Jasmine Dragon while I was there."

"No way! We almost stopped in there a few times! You sure were lucky. But, what made you change your mind about settling down?"

Zuko made a face. "My sister."

From Sokka's gathering, Zuko wasn't very fond of the princess. Who would be, really?  
"Huh. Okay, my turn next...."

They played until the sun set and dinner was ready, learning new things about each other as they went. In all, Sokka would say his afternoon was pretty well spent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3 done!
> 
> I honestly don't know if I should do an Aang chapter just bc the group probably wouldn't want Aang anywhere near Zuko until they have a good reason to trust him. idk let me know in the comments if u think i should do one
> 
> okey gn folks  
> -goose


	5. Authors note

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok I used to not like it when authors interrupted their stories for these things but bear with me i see the use of it now

Ok folks so. Due to a recent accident in which I got hit by a school bus, I started this fic to pass the time as I healed from my injuries. Well, as I probably shouldn’t be surprised, turns out I got a ✨concussion✨! My doctor recommended not a lot of screen time, less than one hour a day, so as a result I won’t be able to post every day. My plan is to work on this story over two days per chapter. I doubt this will be a long story, maybe 6-7 chapters in total, but the chapters will definitely come out slower. Tomorrow chapter 4 will be out at some point, probably around some ungodly hours early in the night as usual, but I wanted to let y’all know so that in case I needed to take a break this could explain why. The chapters won’t be any less quality, and im going to try to make them longer, but in all it really depends on how I feel during the process. Thank you all for your support so far on this fic, I’m very proud of how it’s turned out so far, and thank you for your understanding!

-goose


	6. Zuko

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's dinner time, and Katara doesn't like what her friends have done for Zuko. Anger surfaces and things are said that can't be taken back.

Sokka had led Zuko to the eating area, setting him a ways away from the rest of the group. The cuffs chafed his wrists, and his back hurt from the position his arms had forced him to sit in. Zuko stood for as long as Sokka would let him, stretching his back while he could. Eventually, once Sokka had deemed it enough time, he had him sit down.

\----------  
Zuko

Zuko was curious. One, as to how he would eat with his hands behind his back, and two, how Katara would react to him having his blindfold off. The second one made him a bit nervous, he knew she had a short temper-it was worse up close, he found. Zuko watched the Water Tribe Boy, Sokka, stir the pot of whatever they were making- maybe soup? it was hard to tell- and pour a bowl for Toph. 

Out of all of the things he had expected from his imprisonment, what he had experienced was not it. For the most part he was treated well, like they wanted to befriend him. He wanted that too, of course, but he always thought it was just another pipe dream, like going back home. He just hoped they wouldn't give up on him as he had given up on that. If only he had seen the error of his ways sooner, he could be here with Uncle, and maybe even have gained their trust. He sighed, looking down at the cracked stone floor before feeling something behind him. Turning, he saw the Avatar messing with his handcuffs.  
"H-what? W-when did you even GET here??" He spluttered, scooting away from his touch. That was another thing about the group- they were very handsy. Zuko had never really felt any gentle touch, other than Uncle and his mother, but they were both gone, and he was alone now. It was only in his nature to get away from the source of the unwelcome touch, as normally it ended in him getting burned.

Looking up to the boy, he saw him smiling at him. Confused, he began to ask why, and was cut off.  
"Hi! Sorry I snuck up on you like that. I'm Aang!" The boy-Aang- was incredibly hyper and excited. Zuko was tentative to respond, but he knew better, as he did want a chance to reconcile.  
"Cool. Cool yeah um, I'm uh Zuko. But I guess you already knew that. Heh. Uh- what... what were you doing behind me?" 'Wow, real smooth, way to go, Zuko.'

"Oh! Yeah I was trying to undo your cuffs with my bending! So you could, you know, eat. Mind it I take them off?" Agni, this kid was nice. Zuko hadn't really expected to eat tonight, at least not out here with them. He guessed it was a sort of test to see if he would take the chance to capture Aang. Well, if that was the case, they would see that he really did want to help them.  
"Sure, go ahead." 

Nodding, Aang began to peel away the cuffs, freeing his wrists. "Ooh. Um, your wrists are kind of chafed, sorry." Why did he care? "Do you want Katara to come heal them up? So they don't bother you when we put them back on?" He asked.

Zuko tensed. "I don't think putting Katara anywhere near me is a good idea, at least, right now." 

"What? Why not?" Agni, this kid could not be blind to Katara's anger. 

"She's very... angry at me because I, you know, chased you across the world." Zuko decided to use a careful approach, as he didn't want to remind the kid of his past actions too often. He saw Aang nod again.

"Okay, but you're hurt. You need to take care of it somehow! Want me to get Sokka to dress your wrists? He's helped me sometimes when Katara's not around. He's pretty good!" Damn, the boy was persistent. 

"No, thanks, I know how to do it myself." Aang's eyes flicked up to his scar, then back to his face. Zuko looked away. He seemed to understand that was the end of the conversation. He got up and left, leaving Zuko to his thoughts. Why wasn't Aang more careful around him? Well, Zuko was all for the trust, but he would be cautious if the guy who'd chased you across the world suddenly came up and wanted to be his friend. As much as he disliked it, Zuko understood Katara more than the others. She had her guard up and an eye on him at all times, while the others turned their open backs to him and weren't cautious at all. None of it made sense, yet he figured it probably made more sense to them. Maybe they had a system to get him to lower his guard and once he thought they were friends they would leave him. Use him to help Aang defeat his father and then ditch him. Agni, he hoped that wasn't it. Though, as much as he might try, he knows there's no way for them to want to keep him around after his usefulness is at its end. He'd just have to find another goal, like everything else in his life. He'd spent his formative years training to be the best warrior in the four nations, and he lost to his sister and gotten banished. Next he was told to find the Avatar, then he could return home to his rightful place on the throne. He found the Avatar, yet lost again to his conscience. Now he was here, to help the Avatar defeat his- the Firelord, and would eventually be tossed away like what Ozai did to him all over again. Told to move on and waste your time on another goal, only to lose sight of it in the end.

Pulling himself out of that train of thought, he sighed. Someone, he noticed, was walking toward him. Quickly. He jerked his head up to see who it was and his heart sunk when he saw it was Katara. Looking angry. Wonderful, this was going to be fun. She stopped a few feet away from where Zuko was sitting and just stared. After about a minute, Zuko saw what she was doing and broke the tension, letting her win.   
"Yes?" He asked, in the most polite tone he could. 

"What are you doing?" Katara asked. Zuko flinched. 

"I'm sitting here. I don't really know why, Sokka just led me out here." He hoped that was a good enough answer. It was honest, at least. It didn't seem to help his case. Actually it may have just made her angrier, as he watched her stiffen.  
"Sokka!" Oop. That... that's not great.

Sokka walked over, seemingly unsurprised at the scene before him.   
"Yes, Katara?" He was definitely aware of what he just walked into.

"Why is he," Katara made a wild gesture at Zuko, "Not blindfolded, out of his cell, and without handcuffs?!"

Sokka seemingly readied himself for this argument. "Toph took off his blindfold, I led him out here to eat, and I don't know why his handcuffs are off. Maybe you should ask Aang, I saw him here earlier." He spat out.

Oh Agni, Katara was calling over Toph and Aang. They reached where everyone was standing and seemingly took in the situation.  
"What- uh, what's up Katara?" Aang asked.

"I'll tell you whats up. Zuko here doesn't have any restraints on and is not in his cell, but in fact, exactly the opposite of where he should be! Toph, care to explain why his blindfold is taken off?" She was fuming, looking at the group with the second angriest eyes Zuko had ever seen. It almost scared him.

"He came to us wanting to be our friend, to help us. We locked him up. He could have broken out at any time, and he didn't. He could have attacked us when he got out here but he didn't. He won't hurt us. He was telling the truth about wanting to help. It doesn't even make sense to have him blindfolded in his cell he can't see anything out of. Besides, it made him uncomfortable, so I figured no harm could come from it." Toph countered. She could be feisty when she wanted, damn. 

"It doesn't matter what he wants to do! He's our prisoner, it's not our job to make him uncomfortable! Why does he even want the blindfold off? Besides, he may have been telling the truth in the Crystal Caves, but he still attacked me and his own uncle!" Zuko hung his head even lower at that. Katara noticed. "Even he knows what he did was wrong, but where's his uncle? Obviously he didn't care enough to go out and find him like he did with us! Face it, guys, he doesn't care about anything other than his self gain. He just wants to trick us into letting our guards down so that he can capture Aang and kill him, then us. He's not worthy of our trust, he's abused too many others' before, why would we be any different? What reason would he have to want to betray his father, other than to become the Firelord himself?" Katara seemed about done by now. 

Zuko dared a glance up and was surprised. Toph looked pissed. Sokka seemed like he was about to go on a rant of his own, and Aang looked torn between defending Zuko and diffusing the situation. It was Sokka who said something first.   
"You know, he may have betrayed you, but he's helped us out a lot. He saved Aang from a high-security Fire Nation prison where they were going to keep him for the rest of his life so there wouldn't be another Avatar. He risked his life because he knew that was cruel beyond belief, especially for an Airbender, who relies on interaction to thrive. He worked in Ba Sing Se at a tea shop. We even passed it a few times, the Jasmine Dragon. He wanted to settle down and forfeit his search, but his sister tricked him, making him believe he was so close to being the perfect prince everyone had wanted. It's not his fault he betrayed his uncle, it's the result of his sister and her manipulation. He even saved Appa, Katara. He did something not even we could do, including Jet, Smellerbee and Longshot! He knew it was against his orders, yet he knew he had to do the right thing. He's better than you know, and as with everyone, you have no right to judge until you get to know him." Sokka finished. Zuko stared. He remembered all of that just from one game? Nevermind a few exaggerations, Sokka remembered everything he had said. It made him feel a little more wanted here in all.

"I-" Katara started. Zuko cut her off.  
"I think I've caused enough problems. I should go." He didn't want them to bicker anymore because of what he did in the past. He stood up and walked away from the group, back to the campsite he had pitched the first night he got to the ruins. He'd stay for the night and leave in the morning. To where, he didn't know. Maybe to find Uncle. He stalked away from the group, feeling their eyes on his back as he left them.

What he didn't feel was the small presence of another following him to his camp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter uhhh whatever this is done!
> 
> Sorry this was a bit later, I absolutely lost track of time. I tried to make this longer than usual to make up for it, so... we cool?
> 
> Anyway love yall and thanks for the support!  
> -goose

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 1 Finished
> 
> hey hope u enjoyed this shit lol
> 
> its my first fic and uhhh i kinda wanted to make it a oneshot then uhhh i thought up a plot so here u go
> 
> also ik i may have made katara seem harsh i was trying to make her like uhh no hes been chasing us for like months yeah he sucks i hate him, mainly to make her forgiving him all that more genuine and meaningful. i actually love kataras character and she is a queen to be respected 
> 
> lemme know if u liked it ig and i also wrote this in like 30 minutes so excuse any ✨errors✨  
> -goose


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